Occupy Oakland's pepper spray cop hoping for 'psychiatric' compensation

The California police officer who was filmed blanketing a group of peaceful Occupy protesters with pepper spray has filed for worker’s compensation after experiencing psychiatric problems when footage of the incident went viral.

John Pike has a settlement conference scheduled for August 13 in
Sacramento, according to the California Department of Industrial
Relations.  

The video of Pike spraying protesters during a 2011 demonstration
at the University of California was quickly posted to social
media and soon became a rallying point for international Occupy
movements. The images depict Pike calmly dispersing pepper spray
on roughly a dozen protesters who are seated in a line on the
ground and seemingly presenting no threat to police. Multiple
other officers are shown pushing back protesters. Demonstrators
can be heard emitting a sudden gasp as Pike brandishes the pepper
spray can in a dramatic flourish. 

Pike was placed on administrative leave before being fired in
July 2012 – eight months after a task force found that his action
was unwarranted, according to AP. The Oakland police first
described the pepper spray incident as a “non-confrontational
strategy
.” 

Pike is expected to now claim that he was subjected to internet
threats and psychological injuries after the footage was
published online. 

Protesters can be heard on the video shouting “What’s your
name
?” before turning the camera on Pike’s name tag and
identifying him for the audience. Hackers then publicized Pike’s
personal information and shared it widely across the
internet. 

The Los Angeles Times and Sacramento Bee have pressed the police
to reveal the names of the other officers shown in the video,
after their identities were redacted from two reports on the
incident. An Alameda County Court judge ruled against disclosing
the names, however, in order to avoid putting the officers in
potential danger. 

This week, a California state appeals court ruled that media
organizations are entitled to learn the identities of the
officers who were interviewed about the use of pepper spray in
the 2011 rallies. 

Annette Spicuzza, then the UC Davis police chief, was also forced
to step down in the wake of public outrage following the
incident. She told the local Fox affiliate that it would be
unnecessary to release the names of officers who were interviewed
about the incident but not responsible for Pike’s action.

I didn’t make that decision, I didn’t know it had
occurred
,” she said. “If I have any regret out of the
entire situation it’s that we never had an opportunity to make it
right…I had to leave the state for a month because of death
threats and fear for the safety of my family. I’ve lost my home,
lost my name, lost insurance. If these people wanted me to suffer
they got their wishes
.”

Republished from: RT